THE BIG PICTURE: It's human nature to say the most recent experience is "the best" or "the greatest" or "the <fill in superlative here>." However, when history looks back on this season, it's probably safe to say at the very least the 2010 Formula 1 season will be considered a thrilling one, if not at least one of the best.

EVENT: This certainly is one of the grandest sports facility, never mind race tracks, on the globe. However, it still doesn't deserve to be the final race on the F1 calendar. Good thing they fixed that for next year.

QUALIFYING: The set up for the grand finale.

RACE: The tough to pass track is always a factor in this race. This year, it was the factor in the championship.

TRACK: Please Tilke, don't make this layout the basis for the Austin track.

START: Unintended, and unknowingly at the time, Schumacher's fubar was the deciding factor in the championship.

VETTEL: After so many wrote off Sebastian, including Deep Throttle, as a driver incapable of displaying the discipline needed to win a World Championship, he did just that combined with his never questioned speed and talent down the stretch to steal it all from those more experienced.

RED BULL: Perhaps the end does justify the means. By not manipulating the results, we wound up with the most deserved driver, who was never handed any favors, taking the title.

ALONSO: Don't go waving your fist at Petrov. Wave your fist at your own team for pulling a complete boner for telling you to pit at the time they did. Besides, if you couldn't get by Petrov, what makes you think you could have gotten by Kubica and Rosberg who are a heck of a lot better than Petrov?

FERRARI: What were they thinking? Perhaps, that was the problem. They over thought the situation. And choked under pressure.

WEBBER: Sadly for Mark, this well may have been his one and only chance to win a World Championship. And his performance all weekend in the moment of truth was stunningly unimpressive.

HAMILTON: A fine run to end the season. Lewis must be wondering what might have been if not for those two successive brain fades when he led the points.

BUTTON: A great start put the first dagger into Alonso's championship hopes. A strong run to finish out a strong season when most felt his teammate would embarrass him all year. That never happened.

ROSBERG: Excellent drive, especially since Nico ran all the green flag laps with one of tires.

KUBICA: Let's hope Renault (or whatever the team is called next year) makes some strides for Robert to really show off his stuff.

PETROV: Vitaly was fighting for a position ... and his career, so he was under no obligation to give way to Alonso. Besides, Petrov said he would not have fought if Alonso made a move. Alonso never even came close, so Fernando, take your sore losing fist waving back to Spain and cry in your Ferrari pajamas.

ALGUERSUARI: However, unlike Petrov, Jaime was in a different situation. When your senior team member, Webber, has a slim championship hope, you've got to move over right away. That killed any chance Webber had.

MASSA: In the end, Felipe was no help to Alonso's fight for the championship.

BARRICHELLO: Experience gets to stay at Williams.

HULKENBERG: Young talent does not.

KOBAYASHI: Kamikaze-Koba returns.

SCHUMACHER: What a piss poor mistake in a piss poor return for a seven-time World Champion.

LIUZZI: Can Vitantonio be anymore unlucky?

GP2: Now we see if the match up of nationalities -- Sergio Perez (Mexico) and Pastor Maldonado (Venezuela) -- respective fellow countrymen money mogels and talent are good enough to make it in F1. We'll find out just like we did this year with Petrov and Senna.

WORD OF THE WEEKEND: Weltmesister!

STAT OF THE WEEKEND: 9 -- The number of changes for the title lead this year among six drivers.

HISTORICAL STAT OF THE WEEKEND: When Emerson Fittipaldi became the youngest F1 driving champion back in 1972 (25 years, 303 days), it held up for 33 years. Then, a trio of drivers over the ensuing six years continuously dropped that mark -- Alonso in 2005 (24 years, 59 days), Hamilton in 2008 (23 years, 300 days), and now Vettel (23 years, 134 days). Michael Schumacher just missed breaking the record back in 1994, but he was 11 days older than Emmo.

QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND: Sebastian Vettel on the tense moments after the end of the race, "Crossing the line he [race engineer] came on the radio very silently and said 'it is looking good, but we have to wait until the cars finish.' I was thinking, 'what does he mean?'"

QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND RUNNERUP: Sebastian Vettel, unable to contain his excitement starts the post-race press conference saying, "I am a bit speechless. I don't know what you are supposed to say at this moment." And then proceeds to talk longer than he ever has at a press conference.

SCHEDULE: Just four months till the 2011 season begins back in the Middle East at Bahrain. Can next year possibly top this season?